The present invention relates generally to internal combustion engines. More particularly, the present invention relates to a direct lever for controlling valve opening and closing.
Internal combustion engines include valves that are operated at precise intervals to allow fuel and air to enter a cylinder or to allow exhaust gas to escape. Typically, a cam shaft driven by the engine actuates the valves to control the timing.
Many engines include valve-actuating levers that actuate push rods to open and close valves. The actuating levers include one arm that rides on a cam and a second arm that actuates the push rod. One such valve-actuating lever is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,349,688 to Gracyalny. However, the valve-actuating lever of Gracyalny is costly to manufacture and requires precise techniques to maintain the necessary tolerances.